. andcardinaljosephratzingerandpope benedict xvi. >> bret: it was a surprise. coac.pope benedict xvi will resn february 28. that will start a conclave to make new pope in rome sometime before easter. here is the letter from pope benedict said. the resignation letter. in today's world, stout so many rapid changes and shaken by questions of deep relevance of the life of faith in order to govern the bark of st. peter and proclaim the gospel, strength of mind and body are necessary. strength in the last few months deteriorated in me to the extent i have had to recognize my incapacity to adequately fulfill the ministry entrusted to me. for this reason, and well aware of the seriousness of this act, with full freedom i declare i renounce the ministry of bishop of rome. successor of st. peter and entrusted to me by the cardinals on 19 april, 2005. amazing. welcome in a special panel to talk about the resignation. kathryn lopez with national review online. she talked to the pope last fall. david kerr is the correspondent with ewtn, global catholic media network in the u.s.. steven white is t